Wanderers too strong for Phoenix

Feb 4, 2017 - 9:41 AM The Western Sydney Wanderers' lacklustre A-League season has sparked into life with an emphatic 3-1 win over Wellington Phoenix on Saturday.

Nicolas Martinez's third goal of the season was bookended by a Brendon Santalab double as the eighth-placed Wanderers outplayed Wellington to sneak into the top six for the first time since round nine.

A 71st minute penalty by Phoenix striker Shane Smeltz was offset five minutes later by his second yellow card and a sending off.

It was Wanderers' fifth win of the season, edging them into playoff contention, while Wellington drop back down the table to eighth.

Coach Tony Popovic was pleased to come away with an invaluable three points in a season where Western Sydney have struggled for wins, with nine draws from 18 matches.

"It was a tough game, everything we expected," he said.

"We came up against a very good team, a dangerous team and we defended very well for large parts of the game.

"On attack, we always felt we were a threat throughout the match, and tonight we put away those chances."

Wellington, just one point and one place ahead of the Wanderers going into the match, desperately needed a win after dropping points against Brisbane (1-0 loss) and Adelaide (2-2 draw) in their last two games.

Co-coach Des Buckingham said the Phoenix's inability to convert opportunities into goals had proven costly.

"We're disappointed by the manner in which we played. We had good spells in the game where we controlled a lot of the possession, but we never looked really effective with it," he said.

"In that final third again, it's just an area we really need to nail down."

The early omens were ominous, with Western Sydney's pace down the flanks keeping the home team defence scrambling.

The pressure inevitably told in the 22nd minute, with Santalab crashing home his seventh goal of the season, after good work from Martinez in the build-up.

Wellington went to the bench early in the second spell, Gui Finkler replacing Roly Bonevacia but although the Phoenix briefly threatened, it was Western Sydney who struck first.

This time Santalab turned provider, teeing up Martinez for a cool finish and the Wanderers doubled their lead as the hour mark approached.

Five minutes later it was 3-0, Santalab grabbing his second after Terry Antonis completed a strong run to the by-line with the perfect pull-back for Santalab to slam home.

Wellington pulled one back through Smeltz's late penalty - his first goal since returning to the Phoenix after an eight-year absence.

Source: AAP